More awaited from Moreland -- on phantom clinics, quid-pro-quos

Whatever its ultimate impact may be, a report last week from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's corruption commission buttressed much of what is already known and suspected about the dynamic of campaign money in state elections.

In 54 percent of last year's state legislative races, the winner got 80 percent of the vote or more, and of these victors, 90 percent were already in office, the report notes. Incumbents, of course, far out-fundraised challengers.

The report adds: "These contributions [to incumbents] appear motivated not to influence an election that was never in doubt, but to gain access to an officeholder who was likely to remain in power after the election."

What the panel could also have broached, in discussing incumbent advantages, is how stockpiling cash allows legislators -- just like governors and mayors -- to pre-empt serious challenges. That is, an incumbent's access to bigger contributions can simply deter an otherwise willing candidate from running in the first place.

Overall, the commission's interim 98-page report combines elements of a serious policy brief, an opaque indictment -- and an appetite-whetting promise of more detail to come.

"This Commission has discovered much in just a few short months," the report concludes. "Our ongoing investigations have revealed phantom health clinics, inexplicable statutes, pay-to-play arrangements, underdisclosed outside income, misuse of party 'housekeeping accounts,' potentially improper use of campaign funds, and more." While some of the findings are clear, the identities of several purported culprits and players are withheld pending more investigation and possible prosecutions.

So the suspense builds.

The full text released by the commission, organized under the state's sweeping century-old Moreland Act, is available by clicking here.